The History of Monsters. 301

had killed the Prophet Isaiah, he ordered a statue decorated with five heads to be erected for himself; for by this means he claimed to suggest to everyone that he had seen more than the Prophets, who were called "seers" by all. Likewise, the statue of Janus was carved with a double head to show past and future time. Pausanias also records that a statue of Jupiter, notable for having three eyes, stood on an open-air altar; Priam is said to have fled to it after the fall of Troy, and it was later moved to Argos by Sthenelus, son of Capaneus. Thus, by carving the statue with three eyes, they displayed the threefold providence of Jupiter, by which he was said to rule the celestial, terrestrial, and infernal realms. Sometimes the ancients carved statues of Princes with their eyes turned away to signify that Justice ought to be a stranger to bribes, since Princes should reject the gifts of their subjects.

If the hand gestures of statues are considered: the bronze statue of Marcus Aurelius sitting on a horse before the Lateran Palace extends its right hand, palm upward and slightly tilted, with fingers spread and the thumb turned downward—a gesture that used to indicate Peacemakers in statues. Likewise, the statue of Titus Livy of Padua above the doors of his homeland's Praetorium is seen with the index finger moved to the mouth; by this gesture, it is perhaps signified that this author encompassed so much in his writing that he seems to suggest silence to other writers. In Tarsus, there was once a statue of Sardanapalus with hands carved as if he were clapping them together, a gesture said to be a sign of joy.

Now something must be said about statues made without hands. Among the ancients, the statue of Janus was indeed two-headed but lacked hands and feet; by this carving, they indicated that the power of God does not consist in feet and hands, since God, the maker of all things, can terrify the whole world with a mere nod. Furthermore, among the Athenians, statues of Mercury were seen without hands, which is why he was called "Cyllenian Mercury" (the Greeks call handless men *kyllous*). In this way, they signaled that speech possesses power even without gesture. However, since according to Aristotle there are two kinds of speech—namely of the first and second intention—the speech signified by this statue of Mercury is undoubtedly to be referred to the first intention, as if it were speech conceived only in the mind; for speech of the second intention requires instruments later on, specifically the voice and hands, to persuade listeners.

Moreover, Mycerinus, King of the Egyptians, erected twenty statues of handless maidservants around the corpse of his daughter to show the punishment his wife inflicted on the living servants because they were ministers of such a wicked adultery, having assisted the father in abusing the embrace of his daughter. Furthermore, in Thebes, all statues of judges were carved without hands, perhaps because they indicated that judges should not accept bribes. Indeed, near these statues, another representing the Prince was seen without eyes, to demonstrate that a Prince should be moved by no emotional bias, as he ought to gaze only upon equity.

If we consider the various gestures of the fingers observed in the hands of statues, they are almost innumerable; nevertheless, for the present, we will note only the more significant ones. Valerian mentions a certain statue in barbaric dress, carved in a dancing gesture with fingers clicking above the head as if making some sharp sound, by which an effeminate and ruined softness was denoted. Additionally, in some statues, the right hand was seen holding the fasces, while the left was arranged so that the little finger, as if turned into a circle, touched the middle of the palm; by this gesture, unity was noted. In this way, they wished to show that the person to whom the statue belonged had held the office of consul only once.

And when the little and ring fingers of the left hand were bent, as described just above, they signified "twice"; indeed, if such a finger gesture was on the right hand, it suggested two hundred. Next, if the little, ring, and middle fingers of the left hand were bent together, they indicated the number three, but such a gesture on the right hand suggested three hundred. But the middle and ring fingers curved toward the palm, with the others standing out, manifested four on the left and four hundred on the right. But the middle finger alone of the left hand bent, with the rest extended, denoted five, and on the right, five hundred. The ring finger of the left hand alone curved, with the others extended, showed six, and on the right, six hundred. The little finger of the left hand bent so that it touched the lowest mound of the palm signified seven, and on the right, seven hundred. The ring and little fingers of the left hand bent toward the back part of the pal-